The gates of [the city] shall not be shut at all by day; for there shall be no night there.
Revelation 21:25
Words: Lydia O. Baxter, in Precious Hymns (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: Bethany Sabbath School, 1870). She wrote these words for Silas Vail.
Music: Silas J. Vail (🔊 pdf nwc).
If you know where to get a good photo of Vail (head & shoulders, at least 200×300 pixels),
Lord Shaftesbury once told the following story:
A young woman had wandered away from home and parents. One day, while listening to the Gospel, she was so impressed that she resolved to return home.
She started, and on reaching the house found the door unfastened, and she walked upstairs to her mother.Mother,she asked,how was it that I found the door open?My girl,replied the mother,that door has never been closed since you have been away; I thought that some night my poor girl would return.Sankey, p. 264
There is a gate that stands ajar,
And through its portals gleaming
A radiance from the cross afar,
The Savior’s love revealing.
Refrain
O depth of mercy! Can it be
That gate was left ajar for me?
For me! For me!
Was left ajar for me!
That gate ajar stands free for all
Who seek through it salvation;
The rich and poor, the great and small,
Of every tribe and nation.
Refrain
Press onward, then, though foes may frown,
While mercy’s gate is open;
Accept the cross, and win the crown,
Love’s everlasting token.
Refrain
Beyond the river’s brink we’ll lay
The cross that here is given,
And bear the crown of life away,
And love Him more in Heaven.
Refrain